The present invention relates to a frequency synthesizer and a method of low-noise frequency synthesis.
The invention more particularly relates to a frequency synthesizer whose output frequency can be adjusted by integral or fractional values.
Such a frequency synthesizer may be used in various types of radio circuits and, more particularly, in receiving and/or transmitting stages of these circuits. By way of example the frequency synthesizer according to the invention may be used in wireless telephony equipment such as portable telephones.
The appended FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate an integral-value adjustable frequency synthesizer and a fractional-value adjustable frequency synthesizer. A fractional-value adjustable frequency synthesizer is understood to be a frequency synthesizer whose frequency can be adjusted by integral or non-integral multiples of a reference frequency. Such devices are known per se and illustrated, for example, by the documents (1), (2) and (3), whose complete references are stated at the end of the description.
FIG. 1 indicates the basic structure of a frequency synthesizer, which is constructed around a phase-locked loop 10. The phase-locked loop comprises, in essence, a voltage-controlled oscillator 12, a frequency divider 14, a phase-frequency comparator 16 and a loop filter 18.
The voltage-controlled oscillator 12, also referred to as  less than  less than VCO oscillator greater than  greater than  in the following of the text, delivers an output signal whose frequency cannot be increased or reduced as a function of a control voltage applied to its input. This control voltage is produced by the phase-frequency comparator 16, which is connected to the input of the VCO oscillator 12 via the loop filter 18.
The phase-frequency comparator 16 compares the frequency (or phase) of a signal delivered by the frequency divider 14 and the frequency of a reference signal delivered in the example of the Figure by a quartz device 20. When the frequency of the signal delivered by the frequency divider is lower than that of the reference signal, the phase-frequency comparator produces with the loop filter 18 a voltage instructing the frequency of the VCO oscillator 12 to be increased. Conversely, the frequency of the VCO oscillator is reduced when the frequency of the signal delivered by the frequency divider is higher than that of the reference signal.
The frequency divider 14 is a device constructed around a certain number of flip-flops and can thus divide the frequency of the signal of the VCO oscillator 12 only by integral values. The dividing ratio, which is adjustable by integral values, is an integer referred to as N. An adjusting input, indicated by an arrow 22, enables to fix the value N.
The frequency of the VCO oscillator, referred to as FVCO is thus such that:
FVCO=N*Fref, where FREF is the frequency of the reference signal delivered by the quartz device 20.
It is observed that a modification by unity of the value of the dividing ratio N (integral) provokes a variation equal to Fref of the frequency of the VCO oscillator. Accordingly, it is impossible to adjust the frequency of the VCO oscillator 12 with a resolution higher than Fref. In the case where the frequency of the reference signal is relatively high, this resolution may turn out to be insufficient.
A much finer adjustment of the frequency of the output signal of the loop 10, that is to say, of the frequency of the signal delivered by the VCO oscillator 12, may be obtained with a frequency synthesizer in accordance with FIG. 2.
The frequency synthesizer shown in FIG. 2 comprises a phase-locked loop 10 which includes the same elements as those of loop 10 of FIG. 1.
The frequency divider 14, on the other hand, has not only an adjusting input 22 for fixing the value N of the dividing ratio, but also a switch input 24 for switching the dividing ratio between two or more consecutive values around the value N. In the example of FIG. 2, the switch input 24 of the frequency divider 14 enables to switch the dividing ratio between two values, which are N and N+1.
The switch input 24 is connected to a sigma-delta modulator 30 and, to be more precise, to an overflow-carry terminal 32 of this modulator.
The sigma-delta modulator 30 which, in the example of the Figure, is a first-order digital modulator with a word adder 31, has a first digital input 34 for an adjusting instruction referred to as K. The adjusting instruction is added to a digital value delivered by a shift register 36 of the modulator. The register 36 is clocked by the output signal of the frequency divider 14, and receives the output of the word adder 31. It is connected to a second digital input 38 of the adder. When the sum of the adjusting instruction and of the output of the register 36 is lower than a digital capacity of the adder 31, the overflow-carry adopts the logic 0 value, for example. On the other hand, when the sum is higher than the capacity of the adder 31, the overflow-carry adopts the complementary logic 1 value in that case.
The frequency divider 14 is arranged for performing a frequency division with a first dividing ratio when its switch input 24 receives the first logic state and for performing a division with a second dividing ratio which is different from +/xe2x88x921, when the input 24 receives the second switching state.
In the example described, the dividing ratio is N for a logic 0 state and N+1 for a logic 1 state.
Although at any instant the dividing ratio of the frequency divider is an integer, the repeated switching of the ratio between N and N+1 enables to obtain a resulting mean dividing ratio comprised between these two values, that is to say, a non-integral ratio.
In a more precise way, one has:                               Fvco          =                                    1                                                T                  N                                +                                  T                                      N                    +                    1                                                                        ⁡                          [                                                                    T                    N                                    *                  N                  *                                      F                    ref                                                  +                                                      T                                          N                      +                      1                                                        *                                      (                                          N                      +                      1                                        )                                    *                                      F                    ref                                                              ]                                      ⁢                  
                ⁢                  that is,                ⁢                  
                ⁢                  Fvco          =                                    [                              N                +                                                      T                                          N                      +                      1                                                                                                  T                      N                                        +                                          T                                              N                        +                        1                                                                                                        ]                        *                          F              ref                                                          xe2x80x83            
In these expressions, TN and TN+1 are the periods during which the dividing ratio is equal to N and N+1, respectively.
Considering that the adjusting instruction K applied to the first input 34 of the sigma-delta modulator is coded in L bits, and that the maximum capacity of the adder is 2Lxe2x88x921, a fractional part of the dividing ratio equal to K/2L can be defined. The fractional part k/2L is also referred to as k in the following of the text. One has:   Fvco  =            [              N        +                  K                                    2              L                                          ]        *          F      ref      
For low values of the adjusting instruction (K≅0) the output frequency is close to Fref*(N) and for high values of the adjusting instruction (K≅2L) the output frequency is close to Fref*(N+1).
Accordingly, it is possible to continuously adjust the frequency of the phase-locked loop between two values fixed by the choice of the dividing ratio N applied to the adjusting input 22 of the frequency divider 14 and by the choice of the adjusting instruction K applied to the sigma-delta modulator.
The spectral analysis of the output of a frequency synthesizer using a phase-locked loop in accordance with FIG. 2 shows a distribution of noise components around a central line that corresponds to the frequency FVCO. The noise results from the contribution of the various elements of the phase-locked loop and from the sigma-delta modulator.
As suggested by the document (3), already mentioned, it is possible to replace the sigma-delta modulator having one stage as represented in FIG. 2 by a sigma-delta modulator having various cascaded stages and, in particular, by a sigma-delta modulator having two stages. A sigma-delta modulator having two stages (of the second-order) indeed permits a better shaping of the frequency distribution of the noise by moving at least part of the noise to high frequencies. This phenomenon, accentuated by the multiplication of the stages, is referred to as xe2x80x9cnoise shapingxe2x80x9d.
The applicants, however, have given a demonstration of another noise source which results in parasitic secondary lines. These secondary lines particularly appear for certain values of the adjusting instruction K.
As indicated previously, for obtaining a mean dividing ratio with a fractional part, the dividing ratio of the frequency divider having integral dividing ratios is switched between two or more generally integral consecutive values. For a mean dividing ratio of N+k where k represents the fractional part and N the integral part, a switch can be made, for example, between N and N+1.
It has been established that when N+k is close to N r N+1, that is to say, when the fractional component k is close to 0 or 1, one of the values of the integral dividing ratio (N or N+1) becomes very predominant relative to the other in the set of switchings. By way of illustration, when k is close to 0, that is to say, when N+k≅N, the dividing ratio N is frequent in the switch, whereas the factor N+1 is rare.
Applicants have proved the fact that the high repetition of a same integral dividing ratio at the cost of one or various other integral dividing ratios which have been made rare, also leads to a noise that is manifested by parasitic lines in the spectral response of the frequency synthesizer.
It is notably an object of the invention to avoid noise coming from the excessive repetition of certain dividing ratios.
To accomplish this object, the invention proposes a frequency synthesizer including a phase-locked loop and comprising:
a first frequency divider having integral dividing ratios, connected between a voltage-controlled VCO oscillator and a phase frequency comparator PFD,
a sigma-delta modulator connected to the first frequency divider for switching the dividing ratio of the frequency divider between a series of at least two integral values, so as to obtain a resulting mean fractional dividing ratio, while the modulator has at least an input suitable for receiving an adjusting instruction of the fractional component, and
at least a second frequency divider having a fixed fractional dividing ratio, connected between the voltage-controlled VCO oscillator and the frequency divider having integral dividing ratios, and
means for activating the fractional dividing ratio divider when the fractional component (k) of the mean dividing ratio is contained in at least a given value range, and for modifying the adjusting instruction of the fractional component of the sigma-delta modulator.
It should be observed here that the modification of the adjusting instruction has for its object to change the fractional component so that this component is no longer contained in the given value range. The result is a modification of the mean dividing ratio of the first frequency divider. However, the sum of the new dividing ratio and of the dividing ratio of the second divider, called global dividing ratio, is preferably maintained to be equal to the mean dividing ratio that would be obtained without changing the adjusting instruction and by letting the second frequency divider inactive.
Obtaining a certain dividing ratio is, in effect, dictated by the choice of integral dividing ratios between which the integral dividing ratio divider can switch and the choice of an adjusting instruction of the fractional component. This affects the sigma-delta modulator and imposes the more or less repetitive cycles of the switching between the integral values. This is the case in the prior art synthesizers and in the synthesizer according to the invention when the fractional dividing ratio divider has not been activated. In that case a certain dividing ratio is obtained which is the mean ratio already mentioned earlier.
By activating the fractional dividing ratio divider, the global dividing ratio obtained via the integral ratio divider and the fractional ratio divider would thus be modified a priori since an additional dividing stage influences the signal.
However, as indicated above, a suitable modification of the adjusting instruction and, possibly, of the integral dividing values between which a switch takes place, permit to keep the global dividing ratio equal to the mean dividing ratio mentioned above.
The modification of the adjusting instruction thus permits to modify the repetition cycles of the integral dividing ratios and thus to eliminate the parasitic lines in the response spectrum.
In a particular embodiment of the invention where the fractional dividing ratio is 1+xcex5, the given value range of the fractional component (k), for which values the fractional dividing ratio divider is activated, may include the values k so that 0 less than k less than xcex5/2 and 1xe2x88x92xcex5/2 less than k less than 1 with xcex5 so that 0 less than xcex5 less than 1.
In a general manner it may be considered that the fractional dividing ratio frequency divider is preferably activated when the fractional component is close to 0 or 1 and deactivated in the opposite case. For example, the value ranges of the fractional components k, so that 0 less than k less than 0.25 and 0.75 less than k less than 1 may correspond to activation ranges of the fractional dividing ratio frequency divider. This corresponds, for example, to xcex5=0.5.
The activation of the fractional dividing ratio frequency divider permits, as indicated above, to modify the fractional component of the mean dividing ratio which is to be obtained by the integral dividing ratio frequency divider, associated to the sigma-delta modulator.
To revert to the example given earlier, when an additional division by 1.5 is made, this narrows down to adding 0.5 to the fractional component of the desired mean dividing ratio.
Thus, by supposing that 0 less than k less than 0.25, one has:
N+k=N+0.5+kxe2x80x2.
In this expression the new fractional component kxe2x80x2 is such that 0.25xe2x89xa6kxe2x80x2xe2x89xa60,75.
Similarly, by supposing that 0.75 less than k less than 1, one has:
N+k=Nxe2x88x921+0,5+kxe2x80x2.
with kxe2x80x2 so that 0.25xe2x89xa6kxe2x80x2xe2x89xa60.75.
In other words, kxe2x80x2, the new fractional component that must be generated by the integral dividing ratio frequency divider, which is associated to the sigma-delta modulator, permits a more balanced alternation between the dividing ratios, for example Nxe2x88x921, N and N+1 or Nxe2x88x921 and N. This permits to avoid the parasitic lines.
According to a perfectioning of the invention, the synthesizer may further comprise means for setting the value of the least significant bit of the adjusting instruction applied to the sigma-delta modulator to 1.
Applicants have in effect noticed a second phenomenon according to which the regular repetition of the logic values in short patterns, for example, 110011001100 and so on leads to a small number of parasitic lines. The amplitude of these lines is then relatively high. This phenomenon takes place when the value of the adjusting instruction K is even.
When, on the other hand, the value of the adjusting instruction K is odd, the repetition of the patterns remains regular indeed, but the patterns become very long. The energy of the noise is then distributed over a large number of parasitic lines having a small amplitude which resemble a continuum. The amplitude of the individually adopted lines is, however, very low, so that they disappear in the noise of the other elements of the frequency synthesizer.
In a more precise manner, the value of the parasitic frequencies can be given by the following relationship:       F    spur    =                    F        ref            ·              2        M                            2                  (                      0            -            1                    )                    *              2        L            
In this expression, Fspur indicates the frequency with which the parasitic lines recur and M indicates the number of times it is possible to divide the number K coded in L bits by 2, and 0 indicates the order of the sigma-delta modulator.
The fact that the value of the least significant bit of the adjusting instruction is fixed to 1 narrows down to making it odd. This permits to distribute the energy of the noise over a continuum of frequencies. For each of these frequencies, taken individually, the noise amplitude is consequently very low. Outside the oscillation center frequency, no parasitic line appears in the frequency response spectrum.
In all meticulousness, the modification of the least significant bit provokes a modification of the instruction value K desired by the user and thus a modification of the oscillation frequency of the phase-locked loop. However, the error of the set value in effect applied to the sigma-delta modulator remains limited to xc2xdL and leads to an imperceptible frequency change. By way of illustration, for a coding over 24 bits (L=24), the error is xc2xd24 ( less than 10xe2x88x927).
The invention also relates to a frequency synthesizing method by means of a phase-locked synthesizer, comprising:
a first frequency divider, having integral dividing ratios, connected between a voltage-controlled VCO oscillator and a phase frequency comparator PFD,
a sigma-delta modulator connected to the frequency divider for switching the dividing ratio of the frequency divider between a series of at least two integral values, so as to obtain a resulting mean dividing ratio having a fractional component, the modulator having an input for an adjusting instruction of the fractional component, and
at least a second frequency divider having a fixed fractional dividing ratio, connected between the voltage-controlled VCO oscillator and the frequency divider having an integral dividing ratio.
In accordance with the method, said frequency divider having a fractional dividing ratio is activated when the fractional component (k) of the dividing ratio is contained in at least a given value range and in corresponding manner the adjusting instruction of the fractional component of the sigma-delta modulator is modified to obtain a global dividing ratio of the first and second dividers equal to the mean dividing ratio.
The invention also relates to a frequency converter comprising a mixer with a first input, which can be connected to a signal source which delivers a signal with a frequency to be converted. The converter further includes a signal source which has a reference frequency, connected to a second input. In accordance with the invention, the signal source which has a reference frequency may include a frequency synthesizer as described above. Such a frequency converter may notably be used in a portable telephone.
Other characteristics and advantages of the invention pertain to the description that will follow, and have reference to the appended drawing Figures. This description is given in a purely illustrative and non-limitative capacity.